Mr. Nakai is a chef who offers fascinating dishes based on the experience and knowledge he has gained in Italy.

He was born in 1984 in Hyogo. The first time he ate Italian food, he was impressed, which led him to become an Italian chef. In 2018, he went to Firenze, Italy. For four and a half years, he devoted himself to learning everything from Italian regional cuisine to innovative techniques and actively interacted with experienced chefs.  In 2023, he opened EL CIELLO with his younger brother. They continue to prepare attractive dishes with perfect teamwork as brothers.

Mr. Tahara creates innovative dishes that shine with his individuality while applying French and Japanese techniques.

He was born in 1968 in Fukuoka. After graduating from Tsuji Culinary Institute, he started his career at a French restaurant in a hotel. Then, he honed his Italian and French skills by working in Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe, and Fukuoka. In his early 30s, he became independent and worked as an owner-chef for over 20 years at IL PAPPATORE in Hirao and  GRAZIA in Nishi-Nakasu. In 2018, he became the chef of Ristorante Tsurunosou. His creative Italian cuisine mixed with Japanese elements has been highly evaluated.

 

Trained in hotels and restaurants in Japan and three-star restaurants in France, Mr. Sawabe worked as a chef in various hotels and restaurants. In Japan's Hokuriku region, he has served at Kanazawa PREEMINENCE and Yoichi Sanso Auberge de Mikuni. Sympathizing with the concept of "A la ferme de Shinjiro," under the guidance of Mr. Shinjiro Imura, he creates French cuisine at traditional wooden townhouses in Kanazawa.

Mr. Fujimaru wants guests to experience the performance in front of their eyes with all their senses.

He has been the head chef since the opening of GINZA FUJIMARU in 2019. He adds GINZA FUJIMARU's unique essence to each dish and expresses the inheritance of French culinary culture and respect for the ingredients. Every day, he cooks with the hope that his customers will enjoy the splendor and beauty of the ingredients and the harmony of ingredients from Japan, France, and other parts of the world.

Dedicated to Okumura. Inheriting the tradition of French kaiseki and continuing to evolve.

Mr. Kamitsuji was born in 1980 in Kyoto. The head chef and manager of Gion Okumura. He began his training at age 20 when he got a chance to work with his current restaurant. He learned many aspects of Okumura style, a pioneer of "French Kaiseki," a fusion of French cuisine and Kyoto Kaiseki, including cooking techniques, taste, hospitality, and seasonal arrangements. After years of dedication and training, he assumed his current position in 2018. While preserving the traditions handed down by his predecessors, he also explores new directions by introducing more dishes using local ingredients, shaping a new chapter in the restaurant's history.

Mr. Santoscoy pursues a new French cuisine style by weaving his ideas into Japanese ingredients.

He was born in 1992 in Guanajuato, Mexico. After studying the basics of French and other cuisines in Argentina, he moved to the United States. While gaining experience at Napa Valley and Scottsdale restaurants, he became familiar with traditional Japanese crafts such as Japanese kitchen knives and Noh masks. In 2016, he moved to Japan because he wanted to "see Japan with his own eyes, where many things he feels his sensitivity sympathizes with." Enchanted by abundant food, beautiful nature, and warm-hearted people, he relocated to Ishikawa.

Mr. Omoto shares the joy of eating with many people through his dishes made with high-quality, carefully selected ingredients.

Mr. Omoto was born in 1970 in Kyoto. There was an Italian boom when he was a student, and he also felt personally drawn to Italy. Feeling that he wanted to do a job that was related to Italy, he began training at an Italian restaurant. At 28 years old, he moved to Italy, training hard at top restaurants such as the 2-star establishmentRistorante Perbellini and the 1-star restaurant Osteria Cascina dei Fiori. After returning to Japan, he displayed his skills at bistros and Italian restaurants. In 2020, by chance, he was appointed as head chef at DODICI when it opened, and he works in that position to this day. 

Loved to please people and was interested in cooking and serving guests.

Mr. Sakihama was born in 1988 in Okinawa. He has worked part-time at restaurants since he was a student because he liked to please people and was interested in cooking and serving them. In addition to serving customers, he also cooked for the restaurant and trained his cooking skills. Currently, he is the restaurant manager at EL Patio. The restaurant's specialty is pizza baked in the restaurant'sstone oven, and he says, "We offer the authentic taste of the real thing at a reasonable price.

Mr. Ishii is an award-winning chef who embodies tradition and innovation.

He was born in January 1967 in Kyoto. Since elementary school, he has loved to stand in the kitchen and serve food to those around him to their delight. After graduating from culinary school, he worked at Granvia Osaka Stream for 6 years, at the Westin Hotel Osaka for 9 years, and independently in Tokyo for 5 years, followed by 3 years at Granvia Kyoto and 3 years at L'Hôtel de Hiei. He has won many awards, including first prize at the 2009 National JR Hotel Group Culinary Competition. He has been charming guests with his refined taste and artful presentation.

Delicate Japanese cuisine meets French cuisine.

Ms. Mai Noujima was born in 1989 in Hiroshima. As a child, she ran around in the mountains and fields in an area rich in nature. Her grandmother, who loved to cook, inspired her to pursue a career in the culinary field. After graduating from the Hiroshima Suishin Culinary College, she showed her technical skills by participating in the World Skills Competition in London. Having that as a strength, she gained experience at various French and other restaurants in her hometown of Hiroshima and Tokyo while at the same time loving whisky so much that she worked part-time at a whisky specialty store. In 2024, she was appointed as a chef at Restaurant Re:. She is highly anticipated for her future career.

Became a chef before I knew it. My intuition tells me it was the best choice.

He was born in Miyagi Prefecture in 1985. He set his eyes on a cooking career while he was trying out for a wide variety of professions. His thought process going into his new culinary career was that, "It looked like an attractive career when I checked it out, and I thought it might be a great way to meet new people." These days he is constantly communicating with customers and always finding new and interesting things as he works on his menu. It seems his decision to cook professionally was indeed the right choice, and he works hard to delight customers with his food and customer service.

A chef who is well-versed in various genres, such as French home cooking and Italian cuisine.

Mr. Masahiro Fujioka was born in 1978 in Kyoto. After graduating from university, he studied cooking and restaurant management basics at a café restaurant. Then, at the famous restaurant Bistro Bon Morso in Kawaramachi, Kyoto, he learned dishes that express the depth of French home cooking and special cooking techniques. After working as the head chef of a large Italian restaurant, he worked as the head chef of the Italian dining restaurant Gion TAC in Gion, Kyoto. Now, he is not limited to Western cuisine but is actively engaged in training and classes in various genres, such as Japanese and Asian food.

A man who inherits the passion of Mr. Shusaku Toba.

Mr. Kida was born in 1992 in Chiba. After attending culinary school and graduating, he worked at hotels and famous restaurants in Tokyo before becoming sous chef at sio in April 2019. In December 2019, he experienced the launch of Parlor Ohashi and then became the chef of o/sio at Marunouchi o/sio. He also launched the sukiyaki restaurant Kitsune in Nara and the destination restaurant NAGANO in Nagano. Currently, he is the executive chef of nine restaurants operated by sio Inc.

All of the experiences Mr. Gomi went through with pizza have led him to where he is today.

He was born in 1968 in Nagano. Initially, he worked as a pizza delivery staff member. Still, he was impressed by Neapolitan pizza made by professional pizza chefs in Italy and decided to be a pizza chef. After training, he has become one of the world's most respected pizza chef. Later, he honed his skills at specialty stores in Japan and also experienced mobile sales to connect with the needs of different regions. In 2015, he opened Pizza Verde Matsumoto as the culmination of his work. His whole experience with pizza has led him to become who he is today.

She naturally entered the cooking field as she was brought up in the environment where [creating things] was familiar.

She was born in Saitama prefecture. As her parents lived by making things, she was vaguely feeling that she would also have a job to create things, since she was a child. As her grandparents were farmers, she was always surrounded by fresh ingredients such as rice, vegetables, and eggs, and naturally entered the cooking field. After training for 7 years at a restaurant in Haneda Airport, which is operated by a trading company affiliated to an airline company, she entered [Sakura Cafe & Restaurant Ikebukuro]. 

Mr. Osaka became interested in cooking at a Sushi restaurant, which led him to his current career.

Mr. Osaka was born on September 17, 1980, in Osaka. His introduction to the world of food came when he was a child at a sushi restaurant and saw how a sushi chef handled his food. Since then, he has been interested in cooking and considered becoming a chef. After going to France and training in cooking for two years, he gained experience in French restaurants and Italian cafes in Osaka. Currently, he is working at AUX BACCHANALES Kyoto. His authentic French cuisine is well-received by a wide range of repeat customers.

Enjoy traditional and innovative Italian cuisine.

Mr. Kurosawa was born in 1967 in Yokohama, Kanagawa. At 19, he decided to become an Italian chef after being fascinated by the olive oil he encountered at a bistro where he worked part-time. He trained for a total of two years in Italy, mainly in the Veneto region, and worked as a head chef at several famous restaurants in Tokyo. Please enjoy the traditional and innovative Italian cuisine, staying true to the fundamentals.